TRADE: RETAIL SALES UP 1.6% BETWEEN MAY 2001 AND MAY 2002.

Between May 2001 and May 2002, retail trade in "food, drinks and tobacco" gained 1.5% in the fifteen-nation EU. Sales of food in specialised shops fell by 1.0%, while sales in non-specialised stores increased by 2.3%. The non-food sector gained 1.1%. Among the non-food sectors, "textiles, clothing and footwear" fell by 0.8%. Retail sales of "household goods" rose by 0.6% in the EUCompared with May 2001, and among the Member States for which figures are available, the highest growth rates were observed in Spain (7.4%), Sweden (5.1%) and the United Kingdom (4.9%). The strongest declines were recorded in Portugal (-5.1%) and Germany...